Was 'Superman III' That Bad?

Mar 2

Superman III poster — Image Source: The Movie Elite

Superman III was nominated for two Razzies and only achieved 29% on Rotten Tomatoes, but considering the vast number of superhero movie duds we’ve now had the pleasure of seeing from DC, is it really that bad?

Superman III Versus The Rest Of DC

Believe it or not, Superman III isn’t the worst movie in the franchise. Superman IV: The Quest For Peace has a lower Rotten Tomatoes score at just 10%. Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice is also ranked lower. In forty years, the special effects in Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice are going to look like trash. Let’s be honest, they already seem a bit ropey.

Moving onto other DC movies, Batman & Robin, The Green Lantern, Supergirl, Catwoman, and Suicide Squad were all rated lower on Rotten Tomatoes. So, it’s not the worst film that the comics have spawned by a longshot.

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Superman III - What Failed?

Writers David and Leslie Newman came out of the Warner Bros stable and wrote several screwball comedies under their like What’s Up Doc? (1972) and Bette Midler’s Jinxed (1982). Later, the pair would go on to write Santa Claus the Movie, which was arguably their biggest hit.

The director, Richard Lester, often gets the blame for out of out-of-place slapstick extended opening sequence of Superman III. But compare it with the chase sequence from What’s Up Doc? written by David and Leslie Newman, and it’s quite clear where it originated.

This pairing were kept in check in the previous versions of Superman, with story editors. But without any oversight, we had sight gags like Richard Pryor skiing off the roof wearing a pink blanket, getting stuck in a rotating drinks bar, or drunkenly trying to stretch across a computer that needed two keys. All of these would have been funny in the right movie, like Santa Claus the Movie, which was full of the same type of fayre, but this did not work in a Superman film.

Lana Lang was not a replacement for Lois, who, despite only having a handful of lines, stole the screen whenever she appeared. The romance between Lang and Clark was conducted over egg salad and parenting, which, compared to the midnight flights over metropolis and daring rescues we’d had in the last two movies, definitely lacked chemistry. The child was unintentionally written to be one of the most annoying characters in the entire DC pantheon. Not only could Lana’s son not go two seconds without being saved, but he was also a compulsive liar, and sucked at bowling.

This movie got a Razzie for its score. Ken Thorne’s orchestral interpretation of John Williams was mediocre. Giorgio Moroder’s addition of a synth version of Superman’s theme is painful to experience. Many key moments in the film were dragged down by the subpar music.

Superman III – What Worked?

A billionaire villain with no moral compass wanting to exploit the populace and environment for his own greed? The general concept of this film has aged well.

And despite the fact she was used as set dressing for some scenes (and an awkward seduction of bad Superman), Pamela Stephenson’s sidekick, Lorelai, intentionally dumbed herself down and was more engaging than Lana Lang constantly crying ‘Ricky’.

Richard Pryor’s (obviously neurospicy) Gus Gorman is very relatable. After training to become a computer programmer, he gets angry at how much of his income is taken as tax and concocts a scheme to collect the rounding errors (parts of cents). This plot is ‘borrowed’ by the film Office Space as a victimless crime against corporate America. Gus Gorman’s arc is the one thread that brings the plot together, and without Pryor’s convincing performance, Superman III would have fallen apart. The problem with this casting is that Richard Pryor is very identifiable as this type of anti-hero (See Brewster’s Millions), and despite him doing a good job with what he was given, the audience was only ever going to focus on the zany comedy aspects of Superman III with him in the lead.

But there are times where Richard Lester’s more toned down, sarcastic British humor comes through. When Jimmy Olsen comments that ‘most of the people I went to high school with are still in high school’ for example.

The special effects/stunts in Superman III have aged well. The chemical plant fire looks full of jeopardy, and the explosions look excellent. The forced conversion of Vera into a cyborg isn’t as convincing, but it still causes children to have nightmares, just like it did in the 80s. Superman III has lots of subtle design touches, despite the bombastic script. Superman’s suit changes slightly when he comes under the influence of the synthetic Krytonite. His cloak and boots are dark red, and his suit is dark blue. It’s only by a few shades, but it’s enough to change the presence of Superman onscreen. Superman III is a good-looking film.

Bad Superman and the ensuing fight with good Clark are some of the highlights of the entire franchise. It’s well shot, and Christopher Reeve pulls a convincing performance warring against his dark side. It’s a metaphor and an action sequence all in one. Bad Superman blowing out the Olympic torch and shooting back whiskey is also more entertaining than any of the pratt falls crowbarred in.

What Went Wrong In Production?

People may complain about Superman III’s storyline, but it could have been a lot worse. The concept, created by producer Ilya Salkind, had Supergirl in a love triangle with Superman (her cousin in the comics) and Brainiac, and the two of them jousting in the Middle Ages for her love and the fate of the world. Warner Brothers and DC had to sign off on all storylines, and, thankfully, they trashed it. Writers David and Leslie Newman, who wrote the script for the first two movies, were called back and given free reign, although some of the Braniac aspects can still be seen in the conclusion.

During Superman II, director Richard Donner was replaced by Richard Lester, who recut the movie. Lois Lane actress Margot Kidder was very vocal about her dislike of the theatrical cut of Superman II, so her role was reduced to a few lines in favor of Lana Lang. Richard Lester was made famous by his Beatles movies, e.g, A Hard Day’s Night and Help! The Fab Five tended to ad-lib heavily. It was assumed that Richard Pryor would do the same when he was hired, but he decided to stick to the script and play it as written. Richard Pryor was one of the biggest stand-up comedians in America at the time and could have easily added some funnier material if he’d so wished.

Although Superman III has its problems, it’s still entertaining and worth a watch while we wait for James Gunn’s latest reboot. After all, Christopher Reeve is still the Superman that all the others aspire to emulate. If nothing else, fans should see it to watch the master at work.

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